Peek into our Week – Cherry Blossoms – week of 1/8/24

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Our Focus Lesson – The Mitten and Snowflakes

Welcome back to school! We have settled right back into our expectations and routines. This week we had our first Book Study of the school year. During a Book Study, we will read the same book every day of the week. This allows us to practice a learning topic more in depth, as well as learn different things about the story. We read The Mitten by Jan Brett this week! We focused on the sequence of the story and retelling the story in order. We noticed that Jan Brett will give the reader hints about what comes next in the illustrations. We also read other books by Jan Brett and were able to compare and contrast.

Cherry Blossoms also learned all about snowflakes this week! We learned that every snowflake begins as a speck of dirt or dust up in the cloud. Water droplets then surround the speck and freeze into a ball of ice. More water droplets join creating a hexagon shape, and from the hexagon shape will come 6 branches. The snowflake will collect more water droplets as it becomes to heavy for the cloud and begins the fall to the ground. The children know that if they hold their mitten out while it is snowing, that they can catch a snowflake and observe it before it melts!

Preschool Corner

This preschooler is working with the Moveable Alphabet. She is using her knowledge of letters and letter sounds to write the sounds she hears when she stretches the word out.
This preschooler is Making Tens with our Colored Bead Bars. This is a beginning addition work and she works to find what two bead bars equal 10 when added together.
The 100 Board is always a classroom favorite! This child mixed up all of the tiles from 1-40 at the bottom of the board and then worked to put the numbers in order. He chose to make this work more challenging for his brain on his own!

Kindergarten Corner

This Kindergartener read a total of 45 sentences including vowel teams and phonograms and matched them to the appropriate pictures. Talk about a challenging work!
This Kindergartener has learned some individual cursive letters and is ready to put those letters together to write cursive words. He’s doing great!

Enrichment Corner

An exciting day in Music Class – we started the story of Peter and the Wolf where we will learn all about the sounds different instruments make!
An exciting day in Science Class as well – one of our favorite experiments about absorption!

Fun with Friends!

Half of the fun as a teacher is observing what ideas the children will come up with on their own when given the space and the time to do so. This was not a lesson from the teacher, but an organized game that the children designed and implemented on their own through communication!

Peek into Next Week:

Focus Lesson: Adaptation, Migration, Hibernation

Important Dates:

January 25 – Grandparent’s Day – Register at https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090B48A8A92DA6F94-45787247-cherry#/

February 2 – 100th Day of School – more info coming home soon!

Peek into our Week – Cherry Blossoms – week of 12/18/23

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Focus Lesson: Holidays

We spent our last week of 2023 together learning about the holidays! We discussed Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa. We learned how families celebrate these holidays, what activities they do together, and symbols of their celebrations. We also created many adorable crafts this week!

Oh Snow!

Snow in Northeast Ohio has been so unpredictable the past few years, so we took the snowy opportunity this week to have a quick lesson about those wonderful white flakes! We took a trip outside to observe snow. We used four out of our five senses to explore and we determined that snow does not smell and does not sound like anything. We agreed that snow is cold, feels soft at first but after applying pressure it is hard! We asked the scientific question – what would happen if we brought a bucket of snow inside? The next day, we learned why we don’t eat snow off the ground – there was so much dirt left behind after it melted! We had a quick beginning lesson on the water cycle (which we’ll learn more about in the spring!) and learned that snow and rain are both water, but we’ll only see snow if it is cold enough outside. We also learned that snow is made up of ice crystals that stick together – we’ll talk more about this when we return in January!

Ms. Tonya’s Morning in Elementary!

I was able to work with some of my past students this week when I was invited to spend the morning with the Birth Classroom! I received a math lesson, a cultural lesson, and a language lesson from these amazing elementary students. They taught me the work activity and then I had to complete the work on my own. It was so neat to be on the other side of the work mat! I had such a wonderful time and can’t wait to visit again!

Merry Christmas!

We had such a wonderful time this week celebrating with our friends this week! Ms. Sam and I hope you all have a wonderful holiday with your families and that your child enjoys winter break! We’ll see you on Monday, January 8th!

Peek into our Week – Cherry Blossoms – week of 12/11/23

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Focus Lesson: The Christmas Show

We spent the majority of this week preparing for our Christmas Show! We practiced with the whole school several times, while also practicing in our classroom. We are so excited for you to see our show, we’ve worked so hard to make is wonderful for you!

What is Happening Outside?

We took a Nature Walk outside this week to see what is happening outside. We observed that there were places outside with lots of snow and places without much snow. Where the snow was on the ground, the ground felt “crunchy” to us. Where there wasn’t much snow, the ground felt “squishy” to us. We discussed why there would be snow in places that did not recieve a lot of sun, what happens to the snow when it melts, and why the ground would feel different to our feet.

Peek into our Work Time!

It was a Handwriting week in the Blossom classroom! While our work materials are designed to strengthen the fine motor skills in preparation for handwriting, we also practice our handwriting skills with a pencil, and focus on appropriate pencil grip.

This child is working on writing a straight line and practicing his pencil grip.
This child is working with what we call “precursive booklets”, where we practice strokes that we will later use when forming our cursive letters.
There are two things happening on this child’s dry erase board! You’ll see she has written a string of letters at the top, which is one of the ways children present Emergent Handwriting skills. She is also copy writing at the bottom of her board, another part of Emergent Handwriting skills!
This child is ready to write her name in cursive! She is tracing her name here, but I’m sure she’ll be writing it on her own in no time!
Where is your child in the Stages of Handwriting?

Peek into Next Week!

Thursday, December 21: Last Day of School before Winter Break! Children should wear their pajamas and bring a Show & Tell that will fit inside of their backpack! (If your child does not attend school on Thursdays, they may bring their Show & Tell on Wednesday.)

December 22 – January 7: Winter Break! See you on Monday, January 8th!

Peek into our Week – Cherry Blossoms – week of 12/4/23

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Our Focus Lesson: Amphibians

We wrapped up our Animal Classification unit this week by studying amphibians. What makes an amphibian an amphibian? We learned that amphibians are vertebrates, cold blooded, hatch from jelly eggs and that they have permeable skin (which means amphibians need to stay by the water because they drink water through their skin). We also learned that amphibians will live both in the water and on land throughout their lifetime and that they go through a big change called metamorphosis. We really enjoyed our Animal Classification unit! We’ll be revisiting these animal groups all year long as we learn what they’ll do now that the weather is cold, and what they’ll do in the spring.

The Christmas Show!

Our Christmas Show is fast approaching and we are busy preparing! This coming week will be a busy week for all of us, make sure your child is getting plenty of rest to prepare. Wednesday is our Rehearsal. This is not a dress rehearsal, but we will be walking through the entire program so your child is comfortable with the transitions and what to expect. Friday is our Christmas Show! Have your child wear blues, whites, or grays, a scarf, and rubber soled shoes (no heels or boots, please). Please have your child use the restroom before you drop them off with their teachers by 5:30pm!

A Peek into Work Time!

This Kindergartener is working with the Ten Cube Chain. Cube Chains allow the child to count multiples of numbers linearly.
This child is practicing quantity with her numerals out of order. We change the cards and counters throughout the seasons to keep this work interesting to the child. Counting small presents and placing them under the tree sure is fun!
This child is working with our Numbers and Counters. Not only is she practicing counting our the correct quantity, but she is also getting an introduction to even and odd numbers by visually seeing if each counter has a “partner”.
These preschool students are ready for cursive handwriting! They all have beautiful print handwriting, and are ready for a new fine motor challenge.

Peek into Next Week!

We will be spending the next two weeks enjoying our time together and learning about the Holidays that are celebrated this time of year. We can’t believe that it is almost time for Winter Break! This school year is flying by!

Wednesday 12/13: Christmas Show Rehearsal – arrive by 5:45pm

Friday 12/15: Christmas Show – arrive by 5:30pm

12/21: Pajama Day!

12/22-1/7: Winter Break! School resumes on Monday, 1/8

Peek into our Week – Cherry Blossoms – week of 11/27/23

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Our Focus Lesson: Fish

We jumped right back into our Animal Classification lessons after the holiday, and studied fish this week! What makes a fish a fish? We learned that fish are vertebrates, they must live in the water, they breathe using gills, they’re covered in scales, they’re cold blooded, and they lay jelly like eggs (which means they’re sticky).

Getting Ready for the Holidays!

We are busy in the classroom preparing for the upcoming holidays! Children started creating gifts for their parents (shhh… we won’t tell!), and are practicing daily for the Christmas Show! Our theme for the Christmas Show is snow. Your child will need to wear clothing that is blue, white, or gray, and a scarf. We will provide your child with a snowflake headband to wear for the show.

Curriculum Spotlight: ASL

We always love the Fridays when we have an ASL lesson. This week we learned how to sign various holiday theme signs such as reindeer, sleigh, toys, presents, and Santa! We also reviewed some important communication signs such as more, help, please, thank you, and I Love You.

Signing “sleigh”!

Peek into Work Time!

This Preschooler is working with one of our I Spy boxes. These boxes contain various small objects, the child then sorts the objects by isolating the beginning sound and matching the same sound.
This Preschooler is doing so well with isolating beginning sounds, that she is now ready for our Sound Pouches. With Sound Pouches we assist the child with associating the letter sound to the symbol. After they have a solid understanding of that concept, the pouches also contain pictures of various objects, and the child is now matching the object to the letter.
This preschooler started reading this week! She is working with Phonics Folders to practice blending letter sounds together in order to read the word.
This preschooler is working with our CVC pictures and words. Each set focuses on one vowel sound, and the child reads the word then matches it to the corresponding picture.
This Kindergartener was introduced to Consonant Blends this week! He’s learning that two consonants together can make a new sound!

Peek into Next Week!

Focus Lesson: Amphibians

Important Dates:

December 13: Christmas Show Rehearsal

December 15: Christmas Show

December 21: Pajama Day

December 22-January 7: Winter Break

January 8: School Resumes

Peek into our Week – Cherry Blossoms – week of 11/20/23

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Focus Lesson: Thanksgiving and Gratefulness

This short week, we focused our lessons on Thanksgiving and what it means to be grateful. We discussed the first Thanksgiving between the Pilgrims and Native Americans, which led us into our discussion on gratefulness. We brainstormed all of the things we are grateful for which includes family, friends, and pets! We also talked about yummy Thanksgiving foods and our family traditions. It was a super fun short week here in the Blossoms classroom!

Thanksgiving Inspired Work Activities!

This preschooler is practicing table setting.
This preschooler is using a ladel to move pom poms from one container to another.
We learned that Native Americans did not write messages using letters the way that we do now, and that they communicated through pictures. This preschooler is practicing copy writing, by copying the symbols at the top of the page.
This preschooler is using a baster to move water from one container to another. I wonder if the children will recognize this kitchen tool if you use it this weekend.
This preschooler is grasping feathers, just one of the many ways we strengthen the hand muscles for writing.
This Kindergartener is practicing reading sentences and matching the sentence to its corresponding picture.
This preschooler is practicing his addition facts with turkeys!
This preschooler is tonging Indian Corn and sorting them by color.
These Kindergarteners are working together to read the Thanksgiving inspired word and match it to the picture.
This preschooler is creating a turkey craft.
We also made these adorable turkeys to take home!

The Time of Year to Spend with Family and Friends.

We ended the week by spending time with our friends from Aspen and Buckeye! We watched A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving and enjoyed a special snack of popcorn and pretzels!

“Gobble Gobble!”

Happy Thanksgiving!

Ms. Sam and I wish your family a wonderful holiday, and hope you are able to spend this time with family and friends. We also hope that you get a moment to relax! We are so thankful for all of you! – Ms. Tonya

Peek into Next Week:

Focus Lesson: Fish

Important Dates:

December 13: Christmas Show Rehearsal

December 15: Christmas Show

December 21: Pajama Day

December 22-January 7: Winter Break

January 8: School Resumes

Peek into our Week – Cherry Blossoms – week of 11/13/23

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Focus Lesson: Reptiles

We continued our vertebrate animal study this week by learning all about Reptiles.

What makes a reptile a reptile? Reptiles are cold blooded, have dry scaly skin, lay soft shelled eggs, (most) do not take care of their babies, and they breathe with lungs. We learned that there are so many neat things that reptiles can do! Snakes can smell with their tongues. Chameleons can change color depending on how they are feeling. Some lizards can detach their tails and grow new ones. However, our favorite reptile to learn about was the sea turtle! We really loved reptile week!

Preschool Corner:

This preschooler is copy writing, using the month label on our calendar!
This preschooler is working with our Colored Bead Bars. She is matching quantity to symbol.
Look at that proud smile as this preschooler works with our Spindle Box to practice quantity and symbol.

Kindergarten Corner:

Another proud smile from this Kindergartener as he works with our Square Chains from the Bead Cabinet. He is practicing the multiples for 9, 8, 7, and 6!

Operation Christmas Child:

We participated in Operation Christmas Child on Friday. We were able to pack a shoebox full of gifts, such as fun toys, school supplies, and personal care items and a letter that we wrote! These boxes will be delivered to children in need around the world! We are so grateful that we were able to help others this holiday season!

Come work with us!!!

Bring Your Parent to Work Days begin on Monday! If you are able to, sign up for a time slot on one of our allotted days and come work with us! Visits are approximately 30 minutes, and you will be able to observe the classroom as a whole for about 15 minutes and then work alongside your child for another 15-20 minutes. It is a wonderful way to experience our classroom setting and spend some very special time with your child! Sign up at the link below!

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090B48A8A92DA6F94-45382631-cherry#/

Peek into Next Week:

Focus Lesson: Thankfulness

November 22-24: No School! Happy Thanksgiving!

December 13: Christmas Show Rehearsal

December 15: Christmas Show

December 22-January 7: Winter Break! School resumes Monday, January 8th.

Peek into our Week – Cherry Blossoms – week of 11/6/23

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Focus Lesson: Animal Classification – Mammals & Birds

We have continued our study of the Animal Kingdom over the past two weeks. Our Blossoms are currently studying groups of Vertebrates. We started with Mammals and Birds!

What makes a mammal a mammal? We learned that mammals are warm blooded, covered in hair or fur, breathe air with their lungs, give birth to live babies, take care of their babies, and babies drink their mother’s milk.

What makes a bird a bird? We learned that birds are warm blooded, covered in feathers, breathe air with their lungs, hatch from hard shelled eggs, take care of their babies, and don’t have teeth – they have beaks!

With each of these classification studies, the children have been introduced to different species of mammals and birds, as well as the parts of one specific animal. For mammals we learned about the parts of a horse, and for birds we were introduced to the parts of a bird in general but encouraged to look through our various bird books to see how birds look different.

These two children are working together to determine if an animal is a mammal or not a mammal. Just one of the ways we review the characteristics of animals!
This child is working with our Mammal 3 Part Cards under the watchful eye of Douglas, the goat (who is a mammal by the way).
This child is working with our Bird 3 Part Cards. All of these birds within this work can be see around your backyard at home or around the school!

Our Favorite Visitor – Charlotte

Mr. John surprised us with a visit from Charlotte, the tarantula and one of his hissing cockroaches. As a group, we reviewed what we know about arachnids and insects while observing these animals more up close. Thank you Mr. John!

Peek into Work Time:

All smiles for Dynamic Addition! We’ve started practicing carrying over with our Equation of the Day!
Check our those beautiful cursive u’s!
Such a beautiful watercolor painting!

Peek into Next Week!

Focus Lesson: Reptiles

November 17: Operation Christmas Child Packing Party

November 22-24: No School – Thanksgiving Holiday

Come work with us! Bring Your Parent to Work Days! https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090B48A8A92DA6F94-45382631-cherry#/

Peek into our Week – Cherry Blossoms – week of 10/23/23

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Our Focus Lesson: Vertebrates, Invertebrates, & Arachnids!

This week we started our study of the Animal Kingdom. We began with the two biggest categories – Vertebrates and Invertebrates! Vertebrates have a backbone and are classified into 5 groups – mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish. We will spend a week on each of these categories over the upcoming weeks. Invertebrates are animals that do not have a backbone. We will learn about 2 groups of invertebrates this school year – insects and arachnids. However, we were also introduced to some other categories this week – crustaceans, worms, mollusks, sponges, corals, and jellyfish!

Speaking of Arachnids… we learned all about arachnids this week, but mostly about SPIDERS! Spiders have two body parts and eight legs. There are many types of spiders, some are poisonious and others are not. We learned the life cycle of a spider – egg sac, eggs, spiderlings, and spiders. We learned the parts of a spider. And we ended the week with an adorable spider craft!

Preschool Corner:

Some of our older Preschoolers were introduced to one of my favorite work activities this week – the Moveable Alphabet! We use the Moveable Alphabet for so many concepts, including isolating the beginning sounds of words and sounding out words phonetically! This material allows children to work on their writing skills without the pressure of forming each letter – although we work on that skill within the classroom as well!

Kindergarten Corner:

Kindergarteners from all of the primary classrooms participated in their first “Author Share”! At the end of each Writer’s Workshop unit, the children read one of their pieces of writing to their peers. We celebrate the hard work of our friends as well as practice some public speaking skills. I am so very proud of my favorite authors! At the end of the Author Share event, Ms. Kelley surprised the group with a fun, Halloween themed reading game of choosing words out of a cauldron and using their “sound detective” skills to read the words!

TRUNK OR TREAT!

We had SO MUCH FUN at our Trunk or Treat event! We started the day by decorating our classroom and then played some games with our wonderful parent helpers! We saw so many wonderful trunks during Trunk or Treat and ended our day by watching Room on the Broom!

Peek Into Next Week!

November 10: Parent/Teacher Conferences – No School for Students

November 17: Operation Christmas Child Packing Party

November 22-24: No School – Thanksgiving Holiday

Important Links!

Conferences Sign Up: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090B48A8A92DA6F94-45429988-2023#/

Come work with us! Bring Your Parent to Work Days! https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090B48A8A92DA6F94-45382631-cherry#/

A Peek at our Week – Cherry Blossom – week of 10/16/23

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Our Focus Lesson: Trees

This week the Cherry Blossom class learned about Trees! We learned the parts of a tree from the roots and trunk (stem) to the branches and leaves. We know that each part of the tree has some very important jobs to do. The roots soak up the water for the tree, but also hold the tree into the ground and keep it from falling over. The trunk holds the tree up. The branches hold the leaves. And the leaves collect sunlight and turn it into food for the tree so it can grow. We also discussed the life cycle of a tree. Seed, seedling, young tree and older tree. Some trees also have blossoms that grow into fruit to spread their seeds. Other trees, like oak trees and maple trees, just drop their seeds to the ground. We will return to plants and talk more about how seeds spread in the springtime!

This preschooler built the Parts of a Plant puzzle on her work mat, and then worked with Ms. Tonya to label the different parts of the plant.
This Kindergartener traced the Parts of a Plant puzzle and is using his knowledge of letters to read the label, and label his tree diagram.

Preschool Corner:

Preschoolers practiced What Does Not Belong skills in the Language area this week. Our younger preschoolers continued to work on counting with one to one correspondence and number recognition in Math, while our older preschoolers were introduced to Colored Bead Bar Addition. They were introduced to the Knobless Cylinder boxes and their extension cards this week in the Sensorial area of the classroom. Preschoolers also reviewed Characteristics of Living Things while classifying plants vs. animals.

This preschooler sorted pictures into Plants or Animals while also reviewing what animals need to grow and what plants need to grow.
This preschooler is completing addition equations using the colored bead bars.

Kindergarten Corner:

Kindergarteners reviewed the Parts of a Leaf and Parts of a Tree this week in Science. Not only did they learn new vocabulary words through this work, but we also talked about the important jobs each of these parts do for the plant. We discussed two of my favorite words – chlorophyll and photosynthesis! Students also had their final swing letter assessment in our Cursive Handwriting lessons. We’ll be moving onto curve letters next week! In Math, Kindergarteners have been working with the Golden Bead materials to work on their addition skills. Each day they have an “Equation of the Day” on the board to complete using the Golden Beads. They’re doing so well! In Language, Kindergarteners continue to work through their reading skills at their own pace.

This Kindergartener labeled the Parts of a Leaf by reading the labels and placing them where they go. We also reviewed what each part of the leaf is responsible for.
This Kindergartener is working on his Equation of the Day using the Golden Bead materials!

A Peek into Work Time:

This preschooler is working with the Pink Tower Extensions to explore the Pink Tower in a different way.
All children in our classroom are learning the names of the Continents. We will practice this concept in many ways throughout the school year. This preschooler is coloring a world map, using our specific continent colors.
This preschooler is working with the Teens Board, but with the numbers mixed up. This allows the child to focus on the symbol and match the appropriate quanitity when they are ready for more of a challenge.

Enrichment Spotlight: ASL!

We love our Friday ASL lessons! This week we learned how to sign numbers, and then read a Halloween counting book where we practiced signing the numbers and the Halloween characters we saw in the book!

A Peek into Next Week!

Focus Lesson: Vertebrates/Invertebrates & Arachnids

Friday, October 27: Trunk or Treat event!

Friday, November 10: Parent/Teacher Conferences – No School for Students

Friday, November 17: Operation Christmas Child Packing Party